Gitchie Girl: The Survivor's Inside Story of the Mass Murders that Shocked the Heartland by Phil Hamman & Sandy Hamman Page A

windshield as if looking for a certain landmark or road up ahead.
    Suddenly he let out a deep sigh and tapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. “I remember! I was supposed to meet my buddies back at the next drug raid.” He pulled a wide U-turn on the road, and in no time they were headed back from where they’d come. He continued driving, and Sandra began to wonder how many dark country roads surrounded by endless fields they would have to traverse. Finally, she could no longer stand the nerve-racking quiet.
    “Where are we going?”
    “An abandoned house where we think drugs are stored,” he answered quickly, which surprised her. “We have to raid one more place tonight.”
    They continued, making occasional turns until he finally slowed and turned into a long drive leading to what appeared to be an abandoned house with sagging windows and the dilapidated remains of a former barn. A rusty barbed-wire fence that leaned nearly to the ground in places surrounded the house. The soft glow of headlights from a car already in the farm yard slashed through the still night.
    “They are already here,” the Boss said.
    Sandra’s heart jumped. She hoped that when the Boss said “they” he meant his partners and the boys. Maybe the cops decided to bring the boys with them . She hoped to see Roger in the backseat and sat up expectantly, tilting her head at just the right angle to avoid the glare of the window, striving to get a glimpse of his face. Instead, the car door opened to reveal the stern silhouettes of J.R. and Hatchet Face. The Boss jumped out of the pickup, gave Sandra a don’t-you-dare look, and left the door partially open while the three men stood halfway between the two vehicles. Sandra saw J.R. and Hatchet Face exchange puzzled looks when they saw her, and she thought they seemed very surprised that she was here at the drug raid. Maybe they thought I’d be with the sheriff or something.
    Hatchet Face spoke first. “ We needed to take care of some other business. We told the sheriff she was just drunk,” he said, nodding toward Sandra. “But he still wants to see her, so keep her with you. I’ll talk to him on the radio later and get it all straightened out because she’s kind of dumb and scared right now.”
    The Boss seemed edgy. “What did you guys do back at the park after I left?”
    “Ha! All four of them tried to get away,” J.R. laughed.
    “Did they say anything? Ask about the girl?”
    “Yeah, that Roger asked where she was.” His voice dropped on the last word as if to indicate it was a stupid question.
    Sandra perked up at the mention of Roger’s name. A damp gleam of hope sprang into her eyes.
    “How are the four boys?” she asked.
    J.R. sneered. He glared at Sandra; his fixed stare bored right through her. Creepy and deviant, his appearance alarmed Sandra. There was an ugly feel to him.
    “When he came to, they all tried to get away,” he finally answered coldly.
    “Roger came to from the tranquilizer gun?” she asked quietly. He wasn’t as easy to talk to as the Boss. There was something unsettling about him, like a curled snake that could strike at any moment.
    The man nodded. In spite of the horrors of the last hours, her hopes soared at the thought of Roger waking groggy but safe from the tranquilizer.
    The Boss seemed to have more questions, but J.R. brushed him off. He had his own agenda.
    “I’ll stay here and make sure she don’t go nowhere,” he told the Boss and Hatchet Face.
    To Sandra’s dismay, once the two men stepped away from the vehicle, J.R. came over to the pickup, his thick figure filling the open doorway. He climbed in next to her. His mouth was curled into a lewd half-smile, and his eyes looked ravenous.

Chapter 21
    J.R.’s awkward hands descended on her body almost immediately. “Take your pants off!” he ordered through gritted teeth. His foul breath was an assault on Sandra’s nostrils and she automatically twisted away from his